LatLong_lens shader for Softimage x64 on Windows
Jan 12, 2013 - Version 2.1 Beta

The original latlong_lens shader was written by Ralf Habel
ralf.habel@vi-motion.de

Softimage port by Andrew Hazelden
andrew@andrewhazelden.com
http://www.andrewhazelden.com

#Overview
This is the first Softimage 64-bit packaged version of the mental ray latlong_lens lens shader. The latlong_lens shader is designed to render equirectangular images. The shader can be used to create panoramic images with a single click of the render button.

#Installation
You can install the latlong_lens.addon in Softimage using the File > Add-Ons > Install... menu item.

After you install the shader you need to restart Softimage so the shader is loaded into mental ray. If you don't restart Softimage after installing the shader you will get a "shader not found error".

On Windows the Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable Package (x64) is required. If you don't have the Microsoft Visual C+ 2010 library installed on your computer Maya will render a black frame or crash when you click render.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=bd512d9e-43c8-4655-81bf-9350143d5867

#Shader Usage
To use the latlong_lens shader, open your the camera's property window. Click on the "Lens Shaders" tab and click the "Add" button to create a new lens shader. In the pop-menu select "latlong_lens". 

It is possible to mirror the rendering by enabling the lens shader's flipHorizontal attribute.

#Rendering Tip
The best equirectangular image output is from rendering with a 2:1 aspect ratio. (Like a 2048x1024 pixel or 4096x2048 pixel output)

# Sample Softimage Project

You can download a sample Softimage LatLong scene here:
http://www.andrewhazelden.com/projects/mentalray/latlong/softimage_2014sp1_latlong_project.zip

#Links
The latlong_lens shader is also available for 64-bit versions of Maya and 3DS Max:
http://www.andrewhazelden.com/blog/2011/01/latlong_lens-and-cubemap_lens-mental-ray-shaders-compiled-for-maya-2011-x64-on-windows/
